The present invention relates to a seat, and more especially a lounge seat that comprises an envelope containing incompressible filling pieces, such as polystyrene balls.
Seats of this type, in which the envelope, which is made, for example, of a textile material or an impervious synthetic substance, possesses an internal volume greater than the volume of balls forming the filling pieces. It is thus possible to displace the balls inside the bag to allow different configurations of the seat, and in particular to adapt the seat to the shape of the body of the user, in the sitting position. However, this type of seat does not have a very attractive appearance because there is a surplus of envelope to permit the displacement of the polystyrene balls, and, when the user leaves the seat, it remains in the position it had before the user got up.
The object of the invention is to provide a seat of this type, which adapts itself to the shape of the body of one or more users, and which returns automatically to an original position when the user gets up, in order to give the seat an attractive appearance when not in use.
To this end the seat to which it relates, of the aforementioned type, which comprises an envelope containing incompressible filling pieces, such as polystyrene balls, comprises a bottom wall and side walls made of a rigid, semirigid and/or impermeable material, and an upper wall of which at least a part is made of an elastic and permeable material, the filling pieces occupying the totality of the volume defined by the bottom, side and upper walls.
When the user sits down on the upper face of the seat, the upper face deforms to form a hollow in the sitting area, the balls moving away to form a seat back in an area where there is less pressure. This movement is made possible, even though the filling pieces occupy all the available volume, by the fact that air can pass through the material of the upper wall. Furthermore this deformation of the upper part is also made possible by reason of the lateral restriction of the side walls, owing to the nature of the material of which they are made. When the user gets up again, the permeability of the material of the upper wall, combined with the elasticity of this material, brings about another movement of the filling pieces until the upper wall forms a continuous surface.
In order to assist the lateral restriction of the filling pieces, the side walls comprise an inward rim made of the same material, where it meets the upper wall.
According to one feature of the invention, the bottom wall and/or the side walls are made from a sheet of flexible, impermeable and inextensible material.
According to one possibility in this case the bottom, side and upper walls are joined together, for example by sewing, and form a bag containing the filling pieces.
In another embodiment of this seat, the side walls consist of a belt, inside which is at least one bag containing the filling pieces, the upper wall of which is made of an elastic and permeable material.
According to a first possibility in this case, the belt consists of a rigid panel.
According to another possibility, the belt consists of a ring of homogeneous material, such as rubber or a synthetic foam, or consists of an inflatable ring.